R.F. Langley In His 70th Year

I was in Cambridge on the weekend, browsing for books in Heffers, and came across The Face Of It, the latest (2007) collection of poems from R.F Langley, pictured, now in his 70th year. I'd say Langley was one of contemporary poetry's best kept secrets, though his work is known and loved by many; in some ways, his current reputation is analagous to two other Carcanet poets, C.H. Sisson, and F.T. Prince - both late or neo- modernist in style, poet's poets, and really deserving of a wider readership. I've bought the new Langley, and look forward to reading it this summer. His style is wonderfully cursive, bending around corners, swooping and darting in fresh circumstances.

Comments

Anonymous said…

Quite. The poem 'Videlict' in this week's London Review seems excellent. I may not be the best judge, of course; I don't understand all of it, for sure.

Wed Jul 30, 05:24:00 pm 2008

Anonymous said…

Roger Langley has sadly passed away.

Fri Apr 15, 08:24:00 am 2011

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